“A sad soul can kill you quicker, far quicker, than a germ” – from Travels With Charley by John Steinbeck, 1961
I wonder what Steinbeck would think today about all the sad souls hidden away in their homes, locked away from others in nursing homes, out of work because their job just wasn’t deemed as important as Hollywood. Sad souls living in fear.
If I say, ‘I will forget my complaint, I will put off my sad face and wear a smile,’ – Job 9:27
Inspired by an article in the June/July issue, written by Julia Reed, titled Songs of Summer, I got to thinking about songs that stand out in my mind and the memories attached to them. I have skipped the 80s as I was having babies in the 80s and just didn’t keep up with the music.
1990s
The 90s songs I know I learned from my kids. Like the Sweater Song by Weezer. I can still remember riding in the car with my youngest, the windows down and us singing the chorus loud and clear. I really didn’t know the other words until I recently googled them. Hmm, maybe I would not have been singing it with her if I had.
I was a latecomer to Ice Ice Baby by Vanilla Ice; it cracks me up that he now has a show on the DIY Network. Anyway, I didn’t actually begin to like this one until I got the soundtrack for 13 Going on 30 , with Jennifer Garner, which came out in 2004.
Another 90s hit I like is Everyday is a Winding Road by Sheryl Crow .
I remember a bunch more, but they aren’t exactly blog worthy. Hammer Time was a fun beat. And there is a funny memory of my daughter’s teacher singing My Heart Will Go On. Celine Dion she was NOT.
Peaches by The Presidents of the United States of America is pretty catchy. My younger brother was in a short-lived band and this was on their playlist. Watch the goofy video below!
One last hit I like from the 90s is Buddy Holly by Weezer. I never saw the video until I researched it – but I love it! You can read about the song HERE.
2000s
She Will Be Loved by Maroon 5 is a song that always reminds me of my older daughter and sometimes makes me cry.
I liked Alicia Key’s Fallin’ , but I’m not so impressed with the video.
Norah Jones is a favorite with me and my husband – we saw her perform in Tampa years ago and more recently in Birmingham, AL.
A fun listen is “Knee Deep” by the Zac Brown Band. But it makes me miss the beach.
And that’s a wrap.
I originally wrote this a year ago on my other blog, which I am phasing out. Nothing much has changed; well, things may be worse than they were a year ago when it comes to race issues.
From discussions at church, to social media, to radio, to conversations with my husband, the topic of race and racism has permeated the dialogue. One word that I’ve heard that I just can’t quite wrap my head around is “colorblind”. I think I know what people mean when they say they are colorblind, but it doesn’t ring true to me. I believe they are truly wanting to be colorblind in their hearts, but the bottom line is we ARE different hues.
Being colorblind robs us of the wonderful differences God intended. I have two brothers and a cousin who are colorblind and I know a little about what they have missed over the years. My younger brother, who unknowingly wore purple pants as a teen when he thought they were blue, and my older brother who asked for a lot of color-matching fashion advice, have never seen how colorful they really are.
“The solution is not to pretend there is no skin color (that is dishonoring)” – George Robertson
The closest thing I’ve seen to colorblindness of the heart is watching some of my students over the years. Maybe it’s because they have somehow remained untainted by the bias and preconceptions of previous generations.
What I think needs to happen is to remove the pride and prejudice of color and keep the beauty. Easier said than done, I know. But, we need to be careful not to fool ourselves into believing there is no difference in people of different skin colors. In many cases there is a cultural difference. Jesus recognized this in his conversation with the Samaritan woman. He knew she was of a different ethnicity, and yet He pursued her and quickly turned the conversation to the condition of her soul.
This is where our hearts need to go. The bottom line is that racism is a sin problem. It’s a heart problem.
Charles Southern is almost 21 and serving life-without-parole for the shooting death of his friend Makia Coney. On Feb 10, 2010, he and classmate Conner Pridgen left school with Coney, took her to a nearby park and took turns shooting her in the head. At 17 years old, Charles Southern pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, and a judge sentenced him to life without parole.
When this happened, I was teaching sixth grade at the same school where all three of these teens attended. My niece was in classes with all of them. We were all stunned beyond belief; there were no answers.
But now, he’s appealing that sentence based on the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Miller vs. Alabama. Justices ruled that life-without-parole for children 17 and under is unconstitutional.
I watched the first ever televised interview with him tonight, “My dream was going into the military. Catching this case destroyed that” he says.
“Catching that case” is the way he refers to the killing of a girl who was his FRIEND.
He continued talking about his dreams. He said, “I think everyone should deserve to have a family.”
“Do you think you deserve that family?” the interviewer asked. He said he did.
The interviewer went on questioning him. She said people call him a cold-blooded killer. “Are you?” she asked him.
“No. I just made a mistake, cause that wasn’t me. Now they see the real me. Totally opposite.”
The most chilling statement he made was this: “Everybody knows kids will be kids”.
Kids WILL be kids. Murder isn’t a kid thing. It’s not like smoking pot or skipping school.
His advice to teens: “You have to find yourself. You have to stick with it. A life changing experience comes in all different shapes and forms. You don’t have to go to this extreme….You can save yourself.”
“Do you think you’ll save yourself?” he was asked.
“I already have,” was his response.
Southern hasn’t and can’t save himself.
The pride of your heart has deceived you… Obadiah1:3
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. Galatians 6:7
Not In This Soup Alone 